Mail Order Bride
by omni82
Summary: *Complete*Kaoru is a proper lady down on her luck. Kenshin is a rancher seeking a wife. When she responded to his ad, Kenshin had no idea that he could lose his heart to a mail order bride! Chapter 7: Sweet, sweet Finale.
1. A Bloody Prologue

Disclaimer: I don't own it. Thanks for thinking so though. ^^

Mail Order Bride

A Bloody Prologue

By: omni82

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Late May 1863

West Virginia

Twilight. 

The early evening had always been his favorite time of the day. With streaks of lavender and misty swatches of cerulean, Nature painted the heavens with as much skill as the Renaissance Masters had. Yet the skies of the North had never seemed as lovely as it did at home on the banks of the Potomac. When he was home, it was as if everything was clearer. The night air was crisp and had the ability to erase the smell of blood Kenshin had been breathing in for three long years. This homecoming was a long time in coming and he wanted to remember every minute of it. 

It had taken a bullet wound at Gettysburg to get him to come home and already it was worth it. Meandering through the fields of his plantation home, Kenshin felt his spirit reviving. The carnage of the war had taken its toll on him. His bones ached and the slashes on his face throbbed with memory of his misdeeds. He could never forget the battlefield but here he could focus on something else.

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Tomoe.

His beautiful wife was surely the best reason for coming home. He had only seen her once since the war started and that was seven longs months ago. She had been faithfully sending him letters since his initial departure for Charleston but it wasn't the same as being with her. Kenshin missed the sight of her, the scent of her, the feel of her against his body. Tomoe was the only woman he could ever love, the only woman he would ever want to. Tonight, he would show her just how much he missed her. 

That idea cheered him and sped him toward the house considerably faster than his original stroll. As he burst upon the path to the house his keen nose alerted picked up a scent more fitting the battlefield than his peaceful home. 

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Blood.

The front door was open. It shouldn't have been. What was going on? Where was Tomoe? 

Tomoe?

The shadows of the ransacked room obscured what lay before him for a moment as his eyes adjusted. He didn't remember rushing into the house but here he was in the ruins of his study. The sturdy oak bookcase had been upturned and books lay broken on the matted carpet like so many broken bodies. The smell here was much stronger but he didn't rush in to investigate. Instead, the transfixed soldier took one halting step after another like a sleepwalker caught in a nightmare. The floor underneath his beleaguered feet squished unpleasantly, drenched in a dark liquid.

Blood –

No, it couldn't have been blood because that meant Tomoe was hurt and she was fine. Nothing happened to Tomoe. 

It was blood –

It wasn't! Kenshin gripped the edge of the desk as his shins came into sharp contact with the edge. His rational mind was screaming for him to hurry up and see whose blood it was. The rest of him was gibbering with fear of discovery. 

"Someone broke into the house," Kenshin muttered as he circled the desk. "But Tomoe escaped. She's with the neighbors. It's fine." 

But it wasn't. 

The traitorous desk revealed slowly to him a scene that would be burned into his mind for as long as he lived. Her pale hand rested limply on the floor followed by a purple clad arm and shoulder. Those beautiful black eyes peered into his own sightlessly. Her face was chalky and her lips were white. It wasn't right; she was vibrant, colorful, _alive_.

Kenshin didn't realize he had been screaming until a sharp pain in his throat reminded him. The small discomfort brought him back to reality at least partially. One trembling hand caressed her cold face. It didn't feel real; the whole situation felt like one horrid joke. He tried laughing to see if it would bring an end to this torment but each laugh was agony. 

Still giggling, he painfully sat down against the desk and drew Tomoe into his arms. The floor was no place for a lady like her. He smoothed the hair away from her face with a practiced hand. How often had he done that while she slept? Sleeping, she was restless in a way she never was awake. It was easy to relate to such a graceful, elegant lady when one knew she snored. 

What a silly thing to think about when sitting on a floor, Kenshin berated. A niggling thought was telling him that this was wrong, that he wasn't making any sense, that he should be doing something but Kenshin didn't pay attention. After all, hadn't he just come home? He wanted to be with his wife. 

His stroking hand delved lower, rubbing Tomoe's leg and side. Touching her was like a piece of heaven. Kenshin pulled her closer in a desperate embrace. His sanity was rushing back but he fought it. If he said she was dead, then she really was. It was best not to talk, not to think. That way she could stay with him. 

"We're together now," he crooned, rocking her still form like one would a child. Shifting her weight in his arms, Kenshin pressed her face into his shoulder and abruptly froze. Slowly, ever so slowly, he turned his head to look at her, really look at her. His mind balked at the conclusion his eyes gave. Carefully lifting his bride, the anguished man set her down on the chaise, the only undamaged piece of furniture in the room. 

Tomoe was dead but she was not alone. With her was his child, the baby that now slept forever in his mother's dead womb. 

Before the darkness rushed up to claim him, Kenshin beseeched the God who had abandoned him to end his life. 

TBC…

~A good prologue? I kinda liked it. Chapter Three is coming in a hurry so don't worry! I'm nearly done with it. In the meantime, why don't you review? ~ 


	2. A Desperate Flight

Disclaimer: I don't own Rurouni Kenshin. I wish I did. I could go on Oprah and people would send me presents. 

Mail Order Bride

Chapter One: A Desperate Flight

By: omni82

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April 1875

Boston

"Sis, don't do this!" Yahiko Kamiya begged his older sister, Kaoru, for the millionth time as they waited at the train station. Kaoru kept her head held high despite the whispers and stares of the people around her. She was not impervious to the pleas of her younger brother but he did not understand that what she was about to do was for his benefit as much as for hers. 

It had been two long months since their parents died, two months since her fiancé, Aoshi Shinomori, had left her after learning that there was no inheritance. Aoshi hadn't been the only one to desert Kaoru and Yahiko after the devastating news had come from the lawyer. They were broke without a penny to their name and in the high society of Boston, that was just as bad as death. Kaoru had gone over their options over and over again but it was to no effect. They had no savings or relatives to take them in. They needed a miracle to save them from the poorhouse.

And salvation had come in the form of a man. In her desperation, Kaoru answered an ad for a mail order bride. The man, Kenshin Himura, was apparently a man with a wealthy cattle ranch in a small western town named Redemption. They had conversed several times, the last of which ended with a marriage proposal from him. 

_Dear Miss Kamiya,_

I was happy to receive your third letter today. In response to your questions, my spread is about an hour out of town. Redemption consists of a mercantile, a hotel, a church, and a schoolhouse. The town is small and still needs women like you to help sooth out its rough edges.

As I am a man of action rather than words, I'll get to my point. I like what I've read in your letters and I want you to come to Redemption and marry me. I believe you are a practical woman so I will not woo you with words. I can offer you my respect and a place for you and your brother to live in security. God willing, we will be able to raise our sons in the solitude of my home.

Sincerely yours,

Kenshin Himura.

Kaoru had written him back that very day, accepting his offer. Two weeks later, she had received the tickets and was now waiting for the train to come and bring them to Redemption. She smoothed her violet skirt with a practiced hand and gave Yahiko a reassuring smile. There was nothing he could say to make her change her mind. This was for both of them. Living on a ranch would be good for the boy who had spent much of his life cooped up inside due to varying illnesses. 

The blast of a train whistle from down the tracks nearly made her jump out of her skin. It was lumbering toward them and as it came, her stomach twisted into a tighter and tighter knot. Sensing her unease, Yahiko slipped his hand in hers. He looked small and frightened, reminding Kaoru just how young her brother was. No matter what, she would take care of him.

The giant metal contraption was just settling in when a loud call broke through the crowd. "Kaoru! Kaoru, wait!" Aoshi came rushing up to them, out of breath from the run. 

"Yahiko, why don't you go waiting with our suitcases?" Kaoru suggested. "I need to talk to Mr. Shinomori privately." As her small brother scampered off, the young Boston miss face her ex-fiancé. 

"The minister said he could find someone to take the boy." Aoshi announced with a grin. "If it's just the two of us, we'll be alright."

"What are you saying?" Kaoru demanded.

"Someone will adopt your brother. He may be six but he looks younger so someone will probably take him in. Yahiko will only have to spend two maybe three months in an orphanage. Then we can get married, darling." Aoshi took it for granted that his blushing bride-to-be would be happy. 

"I can't leave my brother," Kaoru gasped in horror. "I don't need someone else to take care of him! I can do perfectly well on my own."

"So well that you'd prostitute yourself to a perfect stranger?" Aoshi sneered. He caught her delicate wrist in his strong hand. 

"No one will have you but me!" He snarled. "I won't allow you to give yourself to some rancher." The tall man spat out the term as if it were the worst insult possible. Meanwhile, his grip on her wrist was becoming unforgivably painful.

"Aoshi, let me go!" Kaoru protested loudly. As she began to struggle, a crowd of onlookers formed. The mob began to rumble ominously and Aoshi reluctantly released her. 

"This isn't over. Come home with me right now and all will be forgiven." He gave her the slow smile that used to turn her knees to water. Now it only inspired fear and loathing. 

"I'm not coming home with you," she declared harshly. "I'm going home to a man who will marry me as I stand, without conditions and without threats. That makes him ten times the man you are." 

"Kaoru, I will never let you go. Drop this foolish endeavor at once and come with me." 

She struggled to maintain her composure. "Good-bye Aoshi." 

His intense, aquamarine eyes flared with rage and he raised a hand to hit her. Kaoru did not even give him the chance to strike. With a pair of strong punches to the midriff, Aoshi toppled over and Kaoru fled. 

"Come on, Yahiko. Get on the train. We're leaving now." She called, grabbing her brother's hand as she hurried to the train. An elderly conductor accepted their tickets and smiled at her. Kaoru didn't even spare a glance at the man she once loved as he staggered to his feet.

"Very good, Miss Kamiya. Mr. Himura has secured first-class seats for you and your brother. Please, come this way." Kaoru gaped at the man and dumbly followed him. 

Yahiko bounced up and down on his plush, red seat and stared eagerly out the window. His concern for his sister had abruptly ceased upon boarding the train. This was a grand adventure now, not a sacrifice she was making for him. 

As for her, Kaoru looked straight ahead as the train pulled away. She didn't want to see the face of the man who had told her he loved her or the home she would never return to. In fact, she couldn't see much at all as her vision blurred with the teardrops that fell like rain onto her tightly clutched hands. 

***

"Quit pacing already, Kenshin. Your bride'll be here any minute." Sanosuke Sagara told his boss with amusement. As best friend and foreman to Kenshin, he had been shocked to learn that the enigmatic rancher had plans to get married today.

"Why didn't you tell me you were getting married?" He demanded again. Kenshin suppressed a sighed. Sanosuke had a way of pestering you about everything. That was why he deliberately hadn't mentioned it to his oldest friend.

"It slipped my mind." He told him, taking a sip of his whiskey. Damn it, where was that stagecoach? It was due two hours ago. If it didn't come soon, the judge would be too drunk to marry them today. Kenshin wanted to make it back to the ranch before dark. There was still work to do tomorrow morning. 

The thought of it made him impatient. "We need to give the judge a cup of coffee, not another shot of whiskey. Come one." Sanosuke strode after him. Kenshin clapped a strong hand to the corpulent official's shoulder. The man dropped his cards all over the table.

"Ah, Kenshin. What seems to be the problem?" 

"I don't begrudge a man a drink or two but when you get to ten or twelve, it's time to stop. Let's go get some fresh air." Kenshin hauled the judge out of his seat. The fat man shrugged at his companion who had watched with angry eyes as his money began walking away.

"Hey! You can't take him yet. I still want the chance to win back the money I lost to him." The furious card shark cried. He stood up abruptly, knocking over his chair. Kenshin's hand reached down to his gun.

"Not today, you don't." He replied in a deadly quiet voice. 

"Don't do it, kid." Sanosuke told the man whose hand was also reaching for his gun. "He'll kill you." The card player took a good look at the coldness in Kenshin amber eyes and the cross-shaped scar and decided to go. Sanosuke smirked as he scurried from the bar.

"Time to walk it off, old timer." He said as he grabbed the judge's other arm. They had barely made it to the hotel when the stagecoach pulled up. The driver jumped down and hurried to open the door. A crowd had gathered as the pair of occupants descended. First, a small boy, no older than seven perhaps, hopped down and waited at the side of the carriage. He grabbed the small, white hand that appeared from the inky depths of the coach. Kenshin strained his eyes to see the person stepping out but the crowd was too thick. The hushed whispers of the crowd indicated that his bride had, indeed, arrived. 

Kaoru scanned the mob of people, looking for the friendly face of the man she was to marry. Yahiko hid behind her skirts as they made their way to the nearest building. She would inquire about her missing fiancé there. 

"Excuse me?" A large man blocked her path and Kaoru stifled a scream. He was the most uncouth man she had ever met, measuring well over six feet tall with wild brown hair.

"Mr. Himura?" She questioned faintly, praying for it not to be so. The man grinned.

"No such luck. I'm Sanosuke, Kenshin's foreman. He's inside. May I?" Sanosuke offered her his arm with a sketchy bow. Kaoru felt her mouth curve into the first smile she had enjoyed in two months. Gracefully, she accepted his arm. 

Kenshin had propped up the judge in the far corner of the hotel's lobby and was waiting for Sanosuke to return with Miss Kamiya. The doors banged open as the tall ranch hand strode in with his cockiest grin. Kenshin was not surprised to see the familiar expression. He was sure he'd sport something similar if he had the same woman on his arm that his friend did. If that was Kaoru Kamiya, then he had just struck gold. 

The woman wasn't just pretty; she was breathtaking. Ropes of gleaming ebony hair framed a face that sported no flaw. She was petite with a narrow waist and ripe breasts concealed by a fine lilac gown. But it was her eyes that caught him and drew him in. They were the color of twilight and endlessly deep. She was ethereally beautiful. Redemption had never seen a woman like her and neither had Kenshin.

As Sanosuke approached him, Kenshin straightened up and ran a hand through his hair. He wished he had taken the time to go to the barber as he waited. But no matter, after seeing Sanosuke, his bride would surely be relieved to see him.

"Mr. Himura?" Kaoru asked quietly. As he turned to face her completely, Kaoru stifled a gasp at the cross-shaped scar on his face. Her fingers itched to touch it, to try to bring some comfort to the bearer but good sense stopped her. Despite that they were to be married, she knew very little about Kenshin Himura. He would most likely be offended if she began to touch him so soon.

"Yes." He answered, deliberately turning so she had a better look at his scar. If she was going to run, now was her chance. He was caught completely by surprise by the tears that glistened in her beautiful eyes. Was she upset at the sight? Or did she cry for him? No one had ever shed any tears on his behalf and Kenshin didn't quite know how to react.

"Come on," he instructed gruffly, offering her arm. Sanosuke gave her up reluctantly. "Judge, we're ready." The fat man stirred and squinted at them.

"My god, is she actually going to marry you?" He gasped.

"We're getting married now?" Kaoru echoed in the same tone. Kenshin glared at the judge but tried to give his bride a reassuring look.

"It's a trip back to our home and I want to get this out of the way." He told her gently.

"We aren't staying in town tonight?" She gasped again.

"I have work to do tomorrow that can't wait. If you don't want to do this, Miss Kamiya, I'll buy you a ticket home." But even though he made the offer, Kenshin had no intention of honoring it. She was his now.

"No, I want to get married to you." She said firmly. "I just thought we'd take a couple of days to get to know each other before we got married." 

"Are we going to do this?" The judge asked with unconcealed interest. Kenshin nodded curtly to the man. Kaoru stretched her hand out blindly as she took her place by Kenshin's side. Yahiko, understanding what she needed, grabbed it and came to stand at her other side. He stared with open interest at the man marrying his sister. Kenshin caught him staring and gave him a very slow, very deliberate wink. Yahiko's small face broke into a wide grin.

"Dearly beloved," the judge burped and swayed on his feet. At Kenshin's imperceptible nod, Sanosuke went to stand by the man, propping him up with one large hand. "We are gathered here today to join this woman," the judge broke off again and peered at Kaoru. "What is your name again dear?"

"Kaoru Kamiya." 

"-Kaoru Kamiya and Kenshin Himura in the bonds of marriage. Do you take this man to be your lawfully wedded husband."

"Yes." 

Kenshin silently released the sigh he hadn't realized was pent up inside. This beautiful woman was going to marry him. He was going to have a wife and children. He was going to have a family.

"Well do you want to marry her or what?" the judge demanded. Kenshin realized that his mind had drifted and he nodded.

"I do." 

Kenshin heard his bride sigh in the same relief he had felt and realized she was just as nervous about his answer as he had with hers. He grinned down at her. 

"I pronounce you man and wife. You may kiss the bride." 

The hell he was going to kiss his blushing wife in front of the gawking crowd that had gathered upon hearing about his commencing nuptials. As Kenshin scanned the area for somewhere private to take his new wife, the lady decided to take matters into her own hands. 

When Kenshin didn't immediately kiss her, Kaoru knew something had to be done. Whether he didn't want to or was too shy to, her new husband was going to get that kiss. Placing both her hands gently on his shoulders, Kaoru reached up and placed a demure kiss on her husband's lips. That was nice, she thought. He smelled of leather and morning sunshine and tasted faintly of whiskey. He also looked utterly flabbergasted. 

Kenshin didn't know what had gotten into Kaoru as she pecked him on the lips. His bride really was an unschooled virgin if she thought that counted as a kiss. He frowned down at her and as she looked up at him, her cheeks pink with embarrassment, he captured her mouth beneath his own.

Kaoru didn't know what to think. One minute she was kissing her husband, the next he was kissing her. The two didn't compare. Hers had been a mere brush of the lips where his was a hungry claim to her mouth, to her whole body. She shivered as his hard mouth slanted across her own. Kenshin took this as a positive sign because he deepened the kiss, exploring the soft depths of her mouth with his tongue. Kaoru was just beginning to enjoy the kiss when he broke away.

"Let's go home," his voice was a husky whisper that brought a blush to her cheeks. All she seemed to be doing lately was blushing but at least now she had a good reason. When they got to her new home, her husband would no doubt want to consummate the marriage. 

Sanosuke clapped his friend on the back. "Congratulations. Do you want me to take the brat to the bunkhouse tonight?" He jerked his thumb to Yahiko who looked immediately insulted.

"I'm not a brat!" He cried, climbing all over the tall man and biting his head. Kaoru wasn't sure whether to be amused or horrified. Yahiko's manners certainly left something to be desired but this was the liveliest she had seen him since their parents had died.

"Go ahead." Kenshin told Sanosuke, his grip on Kaoru tightening. 

"Come on squirt. We'll have to double up on my horse." 

"Hey! Don't call me squirt! When do I get my own horse…" Yahiko's voice trailed off as he followed the tall foreman outside.

"He seems happy," Kaoru said. Kenshin squeezed her hand.

"Sanosuke is good with kids, surprisingly." 

"Are you?" She asked tremulously.

"I am. I hope to have a baby by summer," he told her as he led her out the door. A baby by summer. He really wasn't wasting any time. 

The ride back to the ranch was excruciating. Neither person talked. Kenshin wished Kaoru would say something and she wished the same. But what she really wanted to ask was if he actually intended to sleep with her tonight.

All her questions flew out of her head as the ranch came into view. "My God," Kaoru uttered. "It's magnificent." All the colors of the rainbow painted the prairie's wild grass. Cattle were grazing peacefully in their own bovine fashion in small groups. Looking over it all was a large house seated on a grassy knoll. A wide porch wrapped around the face of the house. Kaoru could see in her mind's eye the flowers she would plant before the lovely house and how she would care for them and help them grow here, in her new home. 

"Like it?" Kenshin asked softly. He pulled up right in front of the house. 

Kaoru could only nod. Kenshin helped her out of the wagon, his hands encircling her tidy waist. In a dashing move, he swept her up into his arms and carried her over the threshold. She squealed in delight and clutched his shoulders.

Kenshin was surprised with himself. He wasn't a playful guy. He was dour and forbidding, not playful. But why was it that the look in Kaoru's eyes make him want to become something he wasn't? 

When he put her down, Kaoru got her first look at the inside of her home. What she saw almost made her wish she hadn't. It looked as if the house hadn't been cleaned -- ever. It was going to take a lot of work to make this place a home.

Kenshin saw her wince as she took a look around the place and he hurried to try to explain it. "Sano isn't much of a housekeeper, I'm afraid." He apologized as he moved crusty dishes into the sink and wiped excess crud from off the table. Kaoru smiled at him so warmly that he faltered.

"Don't worry about it," she told him. "Yahiko is mean with a rag. We'll have this place spotless for you in no time." 

"You don't have to…"

"I want to. This is my home and I want it to be as cozy for you as it is for me." She insisted. Searching for a coat rack, Kenshin watched as she uncovered her glorious hair and hung up her bonnet. Her cape soon followed, also neatly hung. He wished that the rest of her clothes would follow but instead of hung neatly, he wanted them thrown recklessly on his bedroom floor. Kaoru apparently got the drift of his thoughts because she looked away and blushed again. Kenshin thought it amusing that he could make one woman blush so many times in one day without actually doing anything to her.

"You must want to freshen up after that long trip." Kenshin murmured softly. "I'll draw you a hot bath." 

"That sounds heavenly." Kaoru agreed. She watched as her new husband disappeared into another room. It gave her time to fully survey the mess before her and catalogue what needed to be done. 

The kitchen windows were positively filthy, Kaoru noted as she wandered into that room. But it was odd; the room was dirty yet neat, yellow curtains hung. It was the little things of the room that denoted a female touch. Dead potted plants, faded curtains, and neatly braided rugs suggested that if a woman once cared for this house, she was long gone. 

"Kaoru?" Kenshin reappeared. It had given him quite a start to find his new bride missing. For a few moments, he had thought she ran off. Any sane woman would have already. 

"Is my bath ready so soon?" When she graced him with that smile, his knees felt unsteady. How on earth did he get so lucky as to wed such an elegant angel? 

As her husband escorted her to wherever the bath was set up, Kaoru decided to make some small talk. 

"Who put up the curtains in the kitchen?" 

Kenshin immediately stopped smiling. "Don't worry about that." He told her. "Enjoy your bath." 

His abrupt attitude startled and annoyed her. She was just trying to be sociable. There was no need to be snappy. 

Kenshin left the room, gently shutting the door behind him. It had been so long since he had any dealings with a woman. He was almost as mannerless as Sanosuke. He had to apologize to his wife so her tender feelings would be spared. Turning, he opened the door again.

"Shut the door!" Kaoru shrieked. She had been settling into the small tub when the door reopened. Now her husband was staring at her naked back like it was the first one he had ever seen. 

"S—sorry." Kenshin stuttered, blinded by his glimpse of creamy white flesh. By God, he wanted her. Tonight she would be his. He'd instructed his lovely woman in carnal delights of the marriage bed. 

And so he stood outside the door, patiently waiting for Kaoru to exit. When she did, he was captivated once again by the sight of her damp, exposed flesh. She wore a prudish white nightgown with the top two buttons undone. With her hair wet and her skin rosy from the warm water, Kenshin would have sworn she was a siren sent to tempt him. He would gladly dash himself on the shores of her body if given half a chance. 

"Where's my bedroom?" Kaoru asked abruptly. Kenshin jaw dropped. Had she read his mind? 

"This way," he stuttered. He ushered her into a large room, dominated by the bed. Kaoru walked slowly around it, tracing the soft quilt with one finger. The windows had an excellent view of the mountains. 

"What a lovely room." She murmured. How sweet of him to make up such a nice place for her. "Where's yours?" 

"This is my room. From now on, it's our room." Kaoru snatched her hand away from the bed like it was a hot iron. She walked right into that one! Now that he had her in his bedroom, he would undoubtedly ravish her! 

Kenshin watched with amusement as recognition hit. He smothered a laugh as she jumped away from the bed. Really, where had she expected to sleep? And just what was she expecting from him? 

"I thought we'd sleep in separate rooms until we became better acquainted." She explained as he slowly moved around the bed to come to her side. 

"We're married." He reminded her. Her husband had that look in his eyes again, the look that spoke of raw, animal desire. She shivered slightly but ducked under his arm as he went to touch her. 

"I thought we'd wait to consummate this marriage until later." Kaoru told him. Kenshin was going to laugh it off until he saw the fear in her eyes. Well damn, he would never force a woman to do anything she didn't want to. He'd give her time. 

"How long?"

"Six months?" No way. He wasn't waiting that long.

"Two weeks." Two weeks? Kaoru stomped forward in her anger.

"Two months."

"One month." Kenshin allowed. "But no longer." 

"Alright. No longer." She promised. The look Kenshin gave sent goose bumps straight up her spine. It was lanced with unrequited desire. 

"But you will sleep here with me. You need to get used to my body against yours." Kenshin warned her. He sat on the bed and began pulling his boots off. Kaoru observed him nervously.

"What are you doing?" If her voice was a bit high, well, who was to blame her? The man had just promised her a month yet here he was getting underdressed.

"I'm tired. It was a long day. I'm going to bed. You should too." Kenshin suggested, divesting himself of the remainder of his clothes. He climbed into bed and closed his eyes. He didn't need to see to know tha this pretty young wife was staring at him, the first naked man she had probably ever seen. 

"I-okay." He could hear her fumbling with her clothes but out of respect kept his eyes closed. It was going to be a long month. 

The mattress shifted as Kaoru climbed into bed. Kenshin peeked open one eye to see his proper little wife with the blankets tucked up to her chin. He smiled. 

"Good-night Kaoru."

TBC…


	3. A New Beginning

Disclaimer: I don't own Rurouni Kenshin. Watsuki Nobuhiro, Shuiesha, Shounen Jump, and Sony do. 

Mail Order Bride

Chapter Two: A New Beginning

By: omni82

Kaoru didn't want to wake up. And she wouldn't if the sun hadn't nudged its way past the arm draped across her eyes and into the dream pervaded with laughter, smiles, and a mysterious man with sad eyes and a cross-shaped scar. 

But the sunlight did intrude and, disoriented and dismayed, Kaoru came fully into consciousness not in her home in Boston but in a quiet room on the prairie. She should have been alarmed at the unfamiliar scene. She should have been momentarily afraid of being alone but she wasn't. In fact, she felt safer than she had in months. Past uncertainties melted away with the remnants of her dream, leaving the Boston miss ready for her first day of married life.

Leaping out of bed was the first mistake of the day that would turn out more than its share of disasters. Her brain immediately registered the shock as her naked feet hit the icy floor. It was cold in here! The first order of business would be to get a throw rug to place on her side of the bed. She didn't understand how her husband could stand getting out of bed in the morning, especially since he slept in the nude…

Kaoru wanted to clap her hands over her red cheeks. She had to stop blushing! Maybe if she conditioned her mind to accept the new facts of her life, she would stop turning red at every thought that crossed her mind. All she had to do was figure out what embarrassed her and quit thinking about it. 

To start with, she had a husband. No blush. He was very handsome. A small blush. He liked to sleep without a stitch of clothing on and had hands that tended to wander when he slept. Hands that did naughty, delicious things to her… Blush. 

Sighing, Kaoru pulled on her plainest dress and warmest stockings. The man to whom she was wed was nothing but a mystery. They barely spoke at all yesterday. What she knew of Kenshin Himura could fill a thimble. He said he wanted children yet he had made no claims to her body last night. Was his gentlemanly nature true or did he also feel uncomfortable knowing so little about her? Kaoru had given little away in her letters, besides her basic situation. Kenshin had asked for no further explanation and she had offered none. If only her very proper acquaintances had the same courtesy. 

The excuse she used for moving out west to marry a stranger was that he offered Yahiko and her security. But that wasn't what drove her at all. Initially, it was the desire to get out of Boston, to escape the knowing smirks and pitying glances of her friends and enemies alike. Kaoru may have ended up destitute after her parents' unfortunate death, but she still had her pride. Better to start anew than to live on the charity of the gawking onlookers in her life.

Yes, Kenshin Himura's letter had been like divine intervention at a time when she most needed it. He had not cared that she came with a younger brother. He loved children and that was why he was looking for a bride. Women were scarce in this part of the west, he wrote, and ones of child-bearing years even scarcer. He wanted a sons to inherit his ranch. A man can only live so long without a woman's touch and, by the sound of her letters, Kaoru was the perfect woman to step in and fill the role. She could give him strong sons and he could give her the desired security and the adventure of her life. 

But being safe from poverty and drudgery wasn't her sole motivator. Kenshin had struck a chord deep inside of her with his description of prairie life. She wanted adventure, a life fraught with excitement and challenge. That, Kaoru knew, could not be found in the staid drawing rooms of Boston's high society. What she wanted was the freedom of the open plains where hard work and self-determination went hand in hand.

Kenshin's reasons for marrying her were as sensible as hers yet Kaoru somehow suspected he had a stronger motivation. Those sad, amber eyes were just a glimpse of the untested depths of the man she had married. Somehow, she couldn't quite believe him when he said that children were his only motivation for marriage. A marriage, it would seem, based on practical needs and desires. Too bad Kaoru wasn't a practical woman, but a passionate one. The key to her happiness would be whether or not she could unlock Kenshin's hidden, fiery nature. 

And given the state he had left her in last night with just a few smoldering glances, Kaoru was optimistic about her happily ever after. 

She floated into the kitchen, her mind once again drifting to kisses and a pair of deceptively sleepy amber eyes. Not even the accumulated grime of God knows how many years put her entirely out of the romantic mood. As she mused before, she was a passionate woman. But luckily she was a passionate woman who could focus that energy into the task at hand. This house needed a few feminine touches. But before that could happen, she would need the strong back of her young slave -- er, brother. Yes, her brother would definitely be needed to do some of the heavy work around here. 

Finding Yahiko proved to be a problem. Last night, he had been whisked away by that tall foreman, Sanosuke. Kaoru searched every room of the house but the closest she came to locating her brother was turning up his coat from under a bed. They had been here less than a day and already his belongings were everywhere. Thank goodness that the sudden change of scene hadn't affected him detrimentally. 

When male voices and laughter floated in through an open window in the kitchen, Kaoru went to it and peered out. To her left, she saw a corral with several men surrounding it, one of which was her husband. These must be the hired men who worked here. Yahiko was probably with them; she had heard him asking about horses yesterday. Now seemed like the perfect time to introduce herself to the people who worked for her husband. 

Kenshin tried not to stare as Kaoru trotted outside. God, she was pretty. Her bright smile invoked answering ones in all of his men who gravitated toward the new Mrs. Himura like moths to a lantern. Kenshin tried to suppress his jealousy as Kaoru greeted each man and shook their hands – sometimes twice as they kept offering them. 

But when offers of marriage started coming, Kenshin decided his men had had enough. 

"She's taken," he growled, hitching a possessive arm around her thin shoulders. The men laughed but Kaoru just stared at him. Where had that come from? 

"Have you seen Yahiko?" She queried, slipping from Kenshin's grip. 

If Kenshin was disappointed, he didn't show it. "I saw him around here this morning. Sanosuke, where's the boy?" 

"I dunno," Sanosuke shrugged. He was the foreman, not a damned babysitter. 

"He could be lost or hurt! We have to find him." Kaoru pleaded with her husband, her doe eyes filled with concern. 

"We will. Look around; he probably isn't far." Kenshin ordered. 

And Yahiko wasn't far. He was, in fact, just yards from the group. The muddy ground of the corral squished unpleasantly under his boots but the boy ignored it. Yesterday, Sanosuke had showed him a horse, a half-wild stallion, that the men intended to break in the next day. Yahiko had begged to help but his new friend had laughed. The foreman insisted that Yahiko was both too small and too green to help. Hell, Sanosuke drawled, he'd never even get close enough to touch the beast. He'd wet himself in fear first. 

"Yahiko Kamiya is afraid of nothing," the boy whispered intensely as he neared the skittish animal. The stallion's nostrils flared and he began prancing away. Persistently, Yahiko followed the horse, wanting not only to touch it but to ride it. Sanosuke would eat his words!

"Come here, you dumb horse." Yahiko commanded as he walked the stallion into the far corner of the corral. If he could just climb up on the horse's back, he'd prove to everyone that he wasn't some kid. 

But when the horse reared, sharp hooves flashing, Yahiko began to get a sinking feeling that maybe he was in over his head. 

Everyone's attention turned to the corral as they heard his shout. Yahiko managed to dodge the stallion's first strike but the horse was quick. As the young boy rolled out to his knees, the fierce beast rose again and this time there was no way Yahiko could escape certain death on his own. 

Kaoru screamed when she saw her brother's narrow miss. Everything seemed to be in slow motion as the horse descended a second time. The men were running for the pen but none of them would be able to make it in time. Falling to her knees, she watched with undisguised horror as the animal struck. 

"No!" Sanosuke cried.

"Kenshin," Kaoru breathed.

Kenshin had seen the boy dodge the stallion and had started running. He was fast; everyone in three counties knew that but he wasn't sure he would be fast enough to save the boy. It never occurred to him not to shield Yahiko with his own body as the hooves lashed out. Kaoru and her brother were family now and Kenshin always took care of family, even if it meant he would get hurt.

And it hurt.

"Kenshin," Sanosuke cried again. With a strength Hercules would have admired, the tall foreman grabbed the stallion's halter and pulled the half-crazed animal from his best friend. Two other men ran over and took the horse from him so Sanosuke could help their boss. 

"Sano…" Kenshin coughed. His friend winced as blood marred the dark earth wear the rancher lay. Yahiko's eyes were wide with horror and he tentatively shook Kenshin.

"Don't die. Don't die!" He screamed, visions of his parents overlapping the fallen Kenshin. 

The boy was shaking violently by the time Kaoru vaulted over the fence. She wrapped her arms around her brother and kissed the top of his head before handing him off to an elderly cowboy behind her. Her first duty was to her husband. 

Running her hands delicately over bruising flesh, Kaoru didn't shy away from the injuries she found. 

"Sanosuke, carry him gently into the house. Put him on the bed," she called as she hurried to keep up with his long strides. 

Kenshin groaned but didn't open his eyes as Sanosuke tenderly laid him out as directed. 

"Go get me warm water and bandages," Kaoru directed another cowhand, this one a slight young man whose innocent face was better suited for a smile than the frown he now wore. 

"What do you want me to do, missy?" Sanosuke asked, turning his wide-brimmed hat over and over in his calloused hands. Kaoru spared him an encouraging smile when she saw how worried he was for his friend and boss. 

"We have to take his clothes off." She told him with just the barest hint of a blush. Sanosuke immediately complied, happy to have something to occupy his hands. 

The young man returned with the bandages and water. Dampening one of the cloths, Kaoru dabbed at a particularly nasty cut on Kenshin's forehead. "It's going to need stitches," she said. "I'll need a needle and thread." 

"Do you want me to stitch it up for you, missy?" Sanosuke inquired. "I do most of that kind of doctoring around here." 

One of the men snorted. "Yeah but Sano's got the hands of a cowboy and I got the marks to prove it." The brawny fellow rolled up his shirt sleeve to present a nasty scar that ran from wrist to elbow. From ten feet away, Kaoru could seem the uneven marks that the needle left. The idea of leaving such an ugly track of scars on her husband's remarkably handsome face left her shuddering. 

"No thanks. I've had plenty of experience with stitches. I want to help Kenshin, not disfigure him." 

The men laughed and the tension in the room eased considerably. Sanosuke smiled good-naturedly. He was used to being the butt of jokes. 

Kaoru talked as she worked. "I did a lot of volunteer work at the hospitals in Boston," she told her captive audience. "It behooved me to learn the practical skills of nursing so I could help and not hinder." So she was babbling, so what? It kept her hands steady and the men were attentive. 

It took only four stitches to close the wound but each time she had to pierce her husband's flesh was one time too many. Two broken ribs and some nasty bruises on his back accompanied the four stitches. In took Kaoru three tries to properly bind Kenshin's chest. Sanosuke propped him up as she worked. 

"He's going to be in a lot of pain when he wakes up." She said, wiping the sweat off her brow. 

"But he will wake, right?" One of the cowhands asked. Kaoru smiled at him.

"Yes, he will wake." She assured him. 

Yahiko listened outside the door as the men cheered. Kenshin would live and he was glad but the only reason his new brother-in-law got hurt was because of him. If he hadn't been so stupid and irresponsible, none of this would have happened. Maybe it would be best if he left. Dispiritedly, the boy went to his room to pack. 

Inside the bedroom, the men were jubilant that their boss was going to live. Kaoru lost count how many times she was kissed. Sanosuke had taken to swatting the men away as they thanked their new mistress. 

"Go, get out!" The foreman eventually bellowed. "Do you think the boss will like it if he wakes up to see you fools kissing his wife?! Get your asses back to work!" The men filed out, their glee unfettered by Sanosuke's affected wrath. 

"Pardon my French, missy." Sanosuke apologized as he backed out of the room. "I'll take care of the place; you take care of Kenshin." 

Kaoru nodded. 

Sano paused in the doorway, hesitant to leave without putting her mind at ease. "Kenshin -- he's a tough guy. A little thing like this won't kill him after surviving all that he did in the war." Gently, he shut the door behind him.

Kaoru returned her attention to her husband. He was resting now but it was uneasy. Injuries like this were painful. Placing a cool compress to his head, she tried to provide whatever comfort she could. 

In his sleep, Kenshin was less forbidding but just as fascinating. Kaoru couldn't believe her luck. She had married a kind, brave man who was chivalrous and dashing. He saved her brother. He gave her his word that he would leave her be for a month. But as he lay sleeping before her, Kaoru found she couldn't leave him be. 

Kenshin awoke at the first touch of shy fingers against his chest. His head was throbbing and it hurt to breathe but if his bride decided that now she was ready to be bold, he could oblige. He bit back a groan as her fingers traced circles around his nipple. 

Kaoru thought he might have a fever. Kenshin was just so _hot_. His skin was warm to the touch and his face looked flushed. His breathing had quickened, making her wonder if perhaps he was dreaming. 

When she stopped her idle playfulness, Kenshin's eyes snapped open. He didn't want her to stop. 

"Kenshin, how do you feel?" Kaoru asked anxiously. The way he was staring at her wasn't…proper. She had to clear her throat a few times as her breath caught. Really, she was no swooning schoolgirl but instinct told her that if she let Kenshin act on that look, that would be exactly what she would become. 

Oh, but to see the thought running through her head now, Kenshin mused. Kaoru looked both aroused and indignant and he hadn't done anything to her. When the month was over, Kenshin decided that his first move would to be to see how far down she blushed. But for now, he would just have to be content to admire it. 

She wanted to ask him again if he was in any pain but when he clutched her hand and pulled her firmly to him, Kaoru's mind shut down. 

Cupped her face in his hands, Kenshin pressed his lips to hers. Kaoru didn't pull away but melted into his embrace. A firestorm of desire raced through his body as she became pliant to his touch. 

Leaning over him was becoming more and more difficult as Kenshin's tongue danced wicked circles around hers. Sensing her need, Kenshin smoothly pulled Kaoru onto the bed and on to him. 

It was shocking how she straddled him, one thigh on either side of his body. But what astounded her even more was how _right_ it felt to be so close to his body. Even through all his clothes, she could feel that marvelous heat.

With little coaxing, Kenshin persuaded Kaoru to place her hands along either side of his head. With her draped over him, he could easily reach all the places he wanted. 

Kaoru gasped as his lips fastened to the side of her neck. It was wrong…she should tell him to stop…in a minute. It couldn't hurt to let him kiss her for just another minute could it? 

Kenshin smirked as his innocent wife tilted her head to allow him better access to her throat. She was telling him without words what she wanted.

She gasped as he unbuttoned the top buttons of her dress. Surely it was too wanton of her to expose so much flesh and yet…

She was hesitating so Kenshin pulled her closer for another drugging kiss. If she wanted to stop, he'd have to know it _now_.

"Kaoru," he said unsteadily as his fingers found purchase in her silken hair, "do you want me to stop?" Broken rib or no, he was more than willing to go on. 

"I-" 

"Boss!" Sanosuke burst into the room so abruptly that the door rebounded and hit the tall cowhand. He didn't flinch as the doorknob dug into his hip but he did immediately clap a broad hand over his eyes. Turning beet red, he continued to stammer his news.

"The boy is missing! He's plumb vanished!" 

Kaoru gasped loudly and rolled off her husband. Here she had been, acting like a loose woman when her brother was lost and possibly hurt! Shame scalded her, heightening the flush on her face. 

Kenshin sighed as Kaoru dismounted and fixed her clothing. He had been so close. But duty called and he sat up. Pain shot through his body and for a moment the world darkened. As his vision cleared, Kenshin felt two pairs of hands on him. Kaoru's delicate touch was like a healing balm as she helped him to his feet. Sanosuke was slightly less useful as he hauled his boss to his feet and offered him a shirt. 

"I got men out looking for the kid but this looks more like a job for the best tracker this side of the Mississippi." Sheepishly, he scratched the back of his shaggy head. "And that ain't me." 

Kenshin gave his friend an amused smile as he awkwardly shrugged into his shirt. Kaoru flitted by his side as he slowly did the buttons. 

"But you're hurt," she protested. "Are you sure you can ride?" She was torn between concern for her brother and concern for her husband. 

"I've ridden with worse injuries," he told her solemnly, reaching for his hat. "We have to find your brother before night falls. Nocturnal animals aren't as forgiving as the ones in the day." 

"Be careful," she murmured as he mounted his horse.

"I'll find your brother." Kenshin promised as he set his horse to a quick canter. Sanosuke grinned at her reassuringly. 

"Have dinner waiting for us missy. We'll be back in no time." 

Have dinner ready for them? Kaoru didn't think so! It was her fault that Yahiko ran away in the first place and she was going to find him. Hitching up her skirts, she headed for the stables. 

TBC…


	4. Lost and Found

Disclaimer: I own no one. 

Mail Order Bride

Chapter Three

"Lost and Found"

Kenshin had saddled up and left by the time Sanosuke had pushed through the throng of worry-warts he was disgusted to call ranch hands. Each man had wanted to come with them, to help find the boy but there was work to do. Grave peril or not, the cows had to be fed, the fences mended, and dinner started for when they got back. Tracking always did give his boss a mean appetite. 

Sanosuke knew that no matter what he might have told the little missy to do, she would take her own path and hunt down her lost brother herself. That's why he hid himself in the shadows of his horse's stall as the sound of petite footsteps scurried by him. The gangly foreman permitted himself a few furtive glances to make sure the lady got properly settled on to her steed before she headed out. Yes, when Sanosuke indulged in matchmaking, he did it correctly. Kaoru was more likely to find Kenshin out on the prairie than her brother. What six-year-old would venture out into the cold when he could hide in the warm hay of a barn? 

Chuckling as he climbed up the rickety ladder to the hayloft, Sanosuke began treading nonchalantly through the prickly grass. He whistled an old tune about a lost love as he combed through the area with his foot. When he struck a hard, squeaking lump in the otherwise fluffy substance, he smiled. After an exaggerated yawn and a good stretch, he plopped down on the obstruction for a good rest. Not surprisingly, his seat protested.

"What do you think you're doing?!" Yahiko demanded as he futilely tried to push the large man off his stomach. Sano lifted his shaggy brow in feigned shock. 

"Little Yahiko? Is that you?" 

"You know it is! Now get up!!" The sadist in Sanosuke let the boy squirm for a few more moments before scooting forward to sit in the hay. Patiently, he waited as the boy fumed before speaking again. 

"I taught Kenshin everything he knows about ranching, you know," The tall man commented idly as he pulled a single strand of hay from the stack and began twirling it between his fingers. Yahiko's eyes widened in surprise. He expected a lecture about his shameful behavior or maybe a swat to the bottom. Sanosuke's kindness was...surprising.

"Yep, he bought this place straight after the war and was determined to make a go of it. Trouble was, he didn't know a cow's head from its ass." The boy was transfixed; the Kenshin he had met seemed like a god to him, perfect at everything. He was perfectly suited for his sister who could make her every wish come true. Beside people like them, he was an insignificant shadow. 

"At the time, I was wasting my life, mooning over the foxy doctor in town. I had no job, no money, and no prospects. Fool that I was, I didn't think all that would matter to her if I just offered her my heart. What a moron." Sanosuke's expressive mouth twisted in remembered pain that was not quite lost from him. Why had he ever thought that a few fumbling words of love from a mongrel half-breed like him could ever win the heart of that frosty lady? 

But that was a story for no one else's ears. He had a job to do here. "So anyway, I was at the local watering hole, trying to drown my sorrows when this big, mean looking brute started coming my way. He'd drunk straight down to the worm and was feelin' pretty ornery. I'm always up for a good fight even when I'm too drunk too stand." Sanosuke gave a short laugh. "Especially if I'm too drunk to stand," he amended. "So I throw a few punches but it don't mean nothing because that guy was beyond pain. He started working me over like you wouldn't believe. The fight spilled into the street where my brains might have gone if Kenshin hadn't stepped in. Before I knew it, he had laid that man out flat and was packing me into his wagon. I guess I passed out then because I came to three days later in the sorriest ranch I ever saw. Kenshin had taken care of me all that time and the least I could do was help out a little."

"You see," Sanosuke said, stretching out his long legs, "Kenshin is a man who needed some time to patch up his heart. He was sick of killing and was ready to start to heal. I reckon he saw ranching as a way to care for something that needed caring for and to make himself useful. It took him a while to catch on, but he turned out to be a damned fine rancher. I see that same need in you, Little Yahiko. You've got what it takes to be a rancher too."

"Do you really think so?" Yahiko asked in a small but hopeful voice.

"I wouldn't say it if I didn't mean it," Sano replied solemnly. He smiled broadly. "Besides, even runts like you can turn out pretty good." 

"I'm not a runt!" Yahiko exclaimed as he jumped on the foreman and began wrestling with him. Sano let out the first truly joyful laugh that he'd had in ages. It seemed that he had a family now. 

***

Kenshin urged his horse into a canter as he made his third sweep of the eastern boundary. His ranch was over a thousand acres but he could safely confine his search to about a mile from the house on either side. It might even be an overestimation. How far could a six-year old boy run in an hour? Wherever Yahiko was, Kenshin would find him. It was his fault that the boy had run.

Years ago, when he was young and innocent, Kenshin had often thought of how his life would be. His wife would tend their pretty little house while he worked out with the horses. He would have a son, a precocious boy who had no fear. Like a good father, he would teach his child right from wrong and instruct him in the joys of hard work and family. Kenshin had it all figured out; after the war, he'd convince Tomoe to go West. They'd rebuild their life together in a land where the sunset was every color of the rainbow. 

But Tomoe hadn't made it through the war and the boy who he wanted to claim as his own had run off. It was all falling through his fingers like bitter sand in an hourglass. All his hopes and dreams were fragmented now and lay in the gentle hands of his lovely new bride. He prayed that she had the power to mend what was so terribly tattered and forlorn. 

But first he had to find her brother. It was no use pinning his hopes on a woman who would hate him forever should he fail to save her precious brother's life. Riding west this time, Kenshin's keen eyes spied a wisp of smoke in the distance. No city child could have lit a fire with the available resources around him. The smoke could only mean one thing; trespassers. The only one remotely close to his homestead was his hated neighbor. If that devil Hajime Saitou had come on to his land, there would be hell to pay. Spurring his horse forward, Kenshin prayed that the man would still be there when he arrived. He was craving a taste of battle.

***

Kaoru hummed to herself as she poked at the embers of her cheery campfire. The lilting song did precious little to calm her nerves though. Yahiko was out there somewhere and she hadn't found him yet. Night had fallen and her little brother, the child she had sworn on her parents' graves to protect, was out there alone with no defense against that which prowled after dark. Maybe if he saw the light from her fire, he would stumble to it and she could save him. But unless he did, there was nothing else she could do in the pitch black prairie. It would be suicide to continue racing across and unfamiliar field in the dark. She resigned herself to waiting. 

The wind picked up, sending chills down Kaoru's spine as she huddled closer to the fire. Eerie noises wafted in from the darkness, begging her to give into her fear. Maybe Yahiko had already been eaten by what was out there. Maybe she would be next. Maybe…

Shaking her head vigorously, the ex-debutante ferociously rid her self of doubt. There was nothing out there that she couldn't face down with her rifle. Nothing at all. But then again…were those footsteps she heard?

"You wouldn't shiver so much, dear Kaoru, if you were in the house like a dutiful wife." 

As her husband emerged from the shadows, Kaoru shot to her feet, automatically taking the man into the sights of her gun. She would have relaxed if his words hadn't sank in. Dutiful wife? Finger tightening on the trigger, the pale beauty motioned her new life partner to take a seat by the fire. She really should shoot him for his remark but she had a feeling that might not go over too well with his men. Slowly, she sat back down with the rifle remaining in her lap.

Kenshin had been surprised and angry to find his beautiful, delicate wife shivering by the campfire. Hadn't she understood that she was to stay home and wait for him? Anything could have happened to her out here! A thin, fragile woman like Kaoru could have been easily killed by a passing cougar or pack of wolves. She had no right prancing around out in the countryside!

But then again, she had managed to light a fire and the way she held that rifle spoke of experience. His heart had been in her sights and she looked capable of shooting. 

Damned if that didn't arouse him too.

Taken aback by a sudden surge of lust, Kenshin remained quiet as he took his place at the fire. After a few moments of open deliberation on his bride's face, she did the same. She kept her rifle in her lap though, and absentmindedly stroked it as if still considering shooting him. The stoic rancher wondered if she had any idea what that was doing to him. 

Kaoru glanced stealthily at her husband who seemed to be transfixed by the gun in her lap. Good. She hoped he feared what she might do. He deserved every minute of anxiety for that dutiful wife crack. She had never been the image of a dutiful anything in her whole life. If they were going to make this marriage work, she had better set him straight. 

"Kenshin, I understand that you are mad at me for disobeying your orders," she began with a semblance of reasonability, "but I am not one of your soldiers. My brother is lost out here and I couldn't do sit around the house. I think you should know right now that I won't jump to do everything that you tell me too. I am a capable woman with a mind of my own and if you can't understand that, well, then this whole marriage was a mistake." She looked into the fire, suddenly unable to face the man after that tirade. If he didn't understand, she didn't know what she'd do. There was no where for her to go and no one to turn to. 

A long silence ensued that became unbearable for the fiery lady. Screwing up her courage, she dared to glance at her husband, certain to find the disapproval that had graced the faces of so many men in her life. Instead, there was only a peaceful smile filled with a tenderness she could not describe. 

When Kenshin had listened to his wife's impassion diatribe he wanted to go out and pummel every male figure that had been in her life. How could they tell his spirited, courageous wife that she was anything less than perfect? It was exactly those qualities that she had belittled that endeared her to him. If she thought he didn't realize what kind of woman he had, she was mistaken. 

"Beautiful Kaoru." He murmured softly. Another shiver raced down the young woman's spine but not because of the cold. Did he really think her beautiful? No, he still didn't realize just what he was getting into. She decided to give it another try.

"I'm a bad cook," Kaoru explained. 

Kenshin's smile widened. "I love to cook." 

"I have a temper that has sent grown men running," she replied.

"Those men were cowards." Kenshin moved closer to her and gently enclosed her small hand in his. 

"I can ride like a man, shoot better than most men I've met, and have a tendency to be overly bold." She explained desperately. Why didn't he understand what she was trying to tell him? 

"My proud, lovely wife," he said again. "Those are the things I admire you for. Do you think I want a woman who I have to constantly coddle and amuse? Your independence and brave heart are what I want. There's no other woman I'd rather have by my side than you and the next man who tells you that you aren't a proper woman will have to answer to me and my pistol." 

What could she but kiss him after that declaration? His lips were so sweet on hers and the little groan he gave as she ran her tongue over his lips was the loveliest sound of all. This man had given her so much, a home, new hope. Kaoru wished she knew how to show him exactly how she felt. 

Kenshin felt like he died and went to heaven. After he told her exactly what was in his heart, his beautiful, young bride threw herself into his arms and kissed him passionately. As her tongue swept into his mouth, he realized what a quick learner Kaoru was. It was just like this afternoon only hotter, more intense. Kenshin didn't know how much he could take.

Even with the wind raging over the prairie, Kaoru felt hot. It was as if her skin was too tight to contain her and she was going to fly apart. All she knew was that she wanted more and she wanted it now. Fisting her two hands in Kenshin's shirt she ripped it open with a resounding tear. The man's brief laughter turned into a low moan as she took his earlobe into her mouth. He had done such wicked, delicious things to her before and now it was her turn. 

Kenshin could barely do much more than feel as his wife feasted on his neck with those pouty pink lips. Her wandering hands traced blazing circles on his chest as she lay draped over him. Not content to lay passively by, he wrapped his arms around her shoulders, his hands moving down her back to cup her pert backside. Kenshin smirked with male satisfaction as Kaoru gave a startled yet very pleased cry. 

Kaoru yanked on his soft hair for another kiss as her husband's hands slid under her skirt to the bare flesh of her upper thighs. This all so very exciting and yet made her feel safe and secure. In Kenshin's arms, she felt like the powerful woman she was never allowed to be. 

Impatient to taste more of his exquisite woman, Kenshin rolled over so Kaoru was beneath him. Fumbling with the buttons of her dress, he managed to bare the swells of her breasts which he lavished with ardent attention. He had only gotten the slimmest glimpse of what charms she possessed and by the flickering light of the campfire, he was ready to see more. 

Kaoru cried out as Kenshin's knowledgeable tongue flicked between the valley of her breasts. This was all so very exciting. She snaked her hands into his shirt and caressed whatever naked flesh she could find. She groaned as his mouth continued to feast and his hand delved once again beneath the swath of calico and lace. 

Desperate now to claim some part of this free-spirit, Kenshin sought intimate contact with his bride. With trembling fingers, her caressed her inner thighs. Each feathery touch brought him closer to her inner heat and wrung a sweet cry from Kaoru. When he at last made contact with the very core of her he let out a groan. She was so very hot and wet for him. It was like touching the sun. 

It was must be sinful, the way he stroked her but Kaoru didn't care. Kenshin's hands were bold and his questing touch made the burning heat in her belly coil tighter like a spring ready to burst. She couldn't take much more of this. If something didn't happen soon, she'd burst. Just when she couldn't take anymore, Kenshin captured her mouth with a hungry kiss and slide a finger deep inside her. The night exploded around her as wave after wave of pleasure crested over her. She might have screamed if her husband hadn't been kissing her so insistently. 

As he brought her to fulfillment, Kenshin felt a rush of male satisfaction. He had brought this magnificent and thoroughly surprising woman to her first climax. Soundly shy, he smiled down at her. How long had it been since his heart had been involved with the act of lovemaking?

"That was, wow, I mean wow." Kaoru breathed. She stared up at her husband and returned his cocky smile. 

"There's more," Kenshin whispered huskily. He chuckled as his lovely bride's eyes widened. 

"More?" She inquired, suddenly out of breath. 

"Oh yes. Something much better." Kenshin teased. "But, I promised you I'd waited a month so sleep tight, Beautiful Kaoru." 

Kaoru's jaw dropped as he rolled off her and settled down to sleep. She continued to stare after him long after his 

breathing evened out and light snores escaped his untroubled lips.. 

What had she done?

TBC…soon.


	5. A Plot Emerges

Disclaimer: I own no one.  
  
Mail Order Bride  
Chapter Four: Emergence of a Plot  
By: omni82  
  
  
Daylight spread over the prairie, its delicate rays opening the eyes of Kaoru. But for once, the early-riser didn't welcome the sun. Instead, she flung her arm over her eyes and groaned. The self-imposed darkness, however, could not erase the events of last night. She had been a wanton, wild woman who had undoubtedly disgusted her husband who had been a saint of a man so far. But what was even worse than her behavior was that she wanted to do it again.   
  
A proper lady wouldn't have reacted so...passionately. A proper lady would have denied her urges and served her husband. But instead of doing what was expected of a Boston-bred miss, Kaoru had denied Kenshin access to her body for thirty days. And since the rancher was a man of honor, he felt compelled to uphold her edict even though she no longer wished to wait. What had she done?  
  
Kenshin's eyes fluttered open when he heard Kaoru's low moan. Immediately, shame rolled over him. He had acted like an animal last night, forcing his attentions on his delicate bride in the middle of a field for God's sake. If she could look him in the eye today, it'd be a miracle. Rolling to his feet, Kenshin shook out his bedroll while trying to covertly study his bride. The youthful beauty was barely looking at him and she hadn't spoken two words to him. It was worse than he thought.   
  
This was unbearable, Kaoru thought. Kenshin hadn't said a word to her and was shaking his blankets like it was the most important thing in the world to him. Was he horrified by her behavior as well?   
  
"Kenshin, I..." She began.  
  
"Kaoru-" Kenshin uttered simultaneously. They both laughed despite of the tension and smiled a bit.  
  
"Go on," Kaoru encouraged.   
  
"I . . ." His bedding hung, half-rolled, in his hand, and his eyes sought a spot far in the distance. "Sometimes . . . we do things that we wish we hadn't. Certain . . . urges, natural urges control us, and take over everything we feel, everything we are . . ." Oh God, he could feel the satin of her skin, like sun-warmed silk slipping through his fingers; his mouth still burned with the salty-sweet sweat of her skin, the soft scent of roses from her hair . . .   
  
Kaoru ducked her head, and began methodically pulling up fistfuls of grass, the back of her neck burning. She willed the knot in her throat not to be tears, compressing all of her sorrow into a hard tangle in her stomach. He wouldn't even look at her; after all those years of loneliness, those empty nights spent in a too-big bed, and now, finally, when she found someone who could take her into his arms, and make the whole world disappear, she had ruined it. Her fingers clawed convulsively at the dark earth, like worms seeking to escape the harsh sun and hide themselves forever away form the light.  
  
"I understand," she whispered, willing her hands to relax.  
  
Kenshin's eyes finally focused on her. "Do you?" he asked quietly. "Because I never will."  
  
Kaoru bowed her head, diamond tear drops quivering on her lashes, but when she raised it again, her eyes were dry. She gave him a long, inscrutable look, and nodded once. But all she said was, "May we look for my brother now?"  
  
He shook his head in assent, thinking he should be elated, but all he could do was wonder why her liquid eyes had looked so lost.  
  
***  
By the time they returned home, the endless expanse of rippling grass had faded from deep gold, to a dark amber tinted by the rose hues of the setting sun, until it was lost all together into the purple twilight, and finally, ebony night. Kenshin's breath shattered in white clouds against the night sky, and Kaoru, sitting silently in the saddle, beside him, merely shivered.  
  
She hadn't said anything all day, merely clung to the saddle of her horse, with grim determination, determined to keep up, no matter how sore she was. When he had once, tentatively suggested that she return home, she had simply given a look through lowered lids. He didn't suggest it again.  
  
He tried a tentative remark, hoping to get her to open up.  
  
"We're almost home."  
  
"Uh-huh."  
  
Kenshin tried again. "He's bound to be there. He probably got scared and came back, as soon as it got dark."  
  
"Hmm."  
  
"You didn't have to cook tonight." Could she cook? Probably; she was so damnably perfect at anything else. He stifled a wave of frustration.  
  
"Uh."  
  
He started to get the distinct feeling she wasn't listening to him anymore. "I once had sex with a ferret."  
  
"That's good."  
  
He gave up.  
  
It was easy to tell when they approached the ranch; light poured from every open crevice, like a single, live ember, poised against the black coal. As they approached, a small figure darted inside; a moment later, light flooded out as a tall, indistinct figure appeared, leaning against the open door frame.   
  
Kenshin frowned, urging his horse into a tired trot, heading it around back to the stable. If it was really urgent, they would have sent someone out to get him, instead of waiting up. Whatever the crisis was, they could spare a few moments for him to unsaddle his horse.  
  
He swung off of its back, as soon as they entered the stable, his boots making a dull thud as he hit the ground. The clip-clop of the two horses echoed eerily in the empty building, lit only by a single suspended lantern.  
  
Kaoru paused, perched in her saddle; she looked longingly at Kenshin, his red hair dulled to a deep auburn in the light, and sighed. He turned at the sigh, a single hand stretched out.  
  
"Need help down?"  
  
She was about to say no, but frowned, realizing she literally could not get down on her own. It wasn't that she didn't want to; her thigh muscles were too cramped to do anything but laugh at the thought. So instead, she nodded, placing her small white hand in his warm, calloused one.  
  
If he was at all revolted by touching her, he hid it admirably well; he wrapped his other arm around her waist and pulled him toward him. She didn't slide down, so much as have her legs give out underneath her. He held her against his chest, for a moment, as the room steadied. Kaoru buried her fingers in the soft folds of the fabric, pooling around his waist. She could feel the heat radiating from his body, and warming her chilled fingers. The scent of open sky and sun-warmed earth filled her nostrils; for a brief moment she rested her forehead against his chest, feeling his heart beat.   
  
They were so close, she thought drowsily, lulled into a deceptive peace. He still held her hand, and she noted, close enough that she could feel the blood racing through his wrist, where their arms touched. Or was it her blood? There was so little keeping them apart - a thin wall of skin, a few layers of clothing. That was all. Get rid of them and there would be nothing to stop her from sliding into his bones, becoming his air, until they were one person, and it was her streaming through his veins. The essence of Kaoru, safe, where she would never be alone again. That was all that stopped them - and his disgust of her.  
  
She sighed and pulled back, remembering the flash of pain and repulsion his eyes had held when he reprimanded her this morning.   
  
"We should go in."  
  
For his part Kenshin sighed as she pulled away, nodding at her statement. For an instant he had felt her relax, with warm puffs of her breath bursting against his chest.  
  
"Kenshin!"  
  
The small form of Kaoru's little brother burst into the room, shattering their solitude.   
  
"Kenshin!" he repeated, panting. "Kaoru! Come quick. There's a big guy - angry -"  
  
Kenshin was off at a dead run, pelting toward the house, as fast as his feet could take him. He heard the harsh sobs of Kaoru's breath, and the thud of her feet as she followed, half of a heartbeat behind him. He burst into the room, his hand on his revolver, and stopped dead.   
  
Standing in his living room was the last man he ever expected to see.  
  
He was tall - much taller than Kenshin. Jet black hair was pulled back in a long ponytail, with three strands escaping to slash across his forehead. His golden eyes were narrowed, and his large cowboy hat was tilted arrogantly against his forehead. His entire posture portrayed an icy indifference; all of his weight rested on one foot, with the other pushed against the wall, its spur scraping the unvarnished wood. He was slouched casually against the wall - too casually, in fact, like he was at once capable of leaping and ripping Kenshin's throat out with his bare hands, or simultaneously going to sleep right there. Everything portrayed absolute, utter calm, except for the rapid puffs of smoke coming from the cigarette dangling between his lips.   
  
"Hajime Saitou," Kenshin breathed, his hand resting warily on his own revolver.  
  
Hajime Saitou. Kenshin's oldest and most respected adversary, from the civil war. Time after time, the two men had clashed, with, nothing but smoke and a litter of young, broken bodies in their wake. An implacable Confederate, treating the union with all of the scorn due for traitors; traitors to liberty, rolling meekly over to let the government rob them of their freedoms. Kenshin hadn't even known he had settled out here.   
  
"Kenshin." He raised one eyebrow. "These morons didn't know where you had gone. If I had realized this hole belonged to you, I might have kept going."  
  
"What do you want?"  
  
"Bandits attacked my home. I need help burying the bodies."  
  
A soft moan echoed from the adjoining room, their bedroom. The cigar he was holding collapsed under the pressure of Saitou's finger at the sound. It was hoarse and low, carrying with a sense of animal pain.  
  
"What was that?" His eyes never left Saitou.  
  
"My wife was injured in the raid," he responded, the white strain about his eyes betraying how much it cost him to say that statement.  
  
"Someone actually married you?!"  
  
"Oh you men, honestly."  
  
Kaoru pushed past the pair giving them each a glare, hurrying toward the source of the sound. A strong hand shot out, capturing her wrist. She turned and glared at the man in outrage.  
  
"What are you doing?" he growled.  
  
"Going to help her, obviously." She jerked her hand free. The whimpers of pain grew louder as she approached the source. She pushed open the door, aware that this Saitou was right behind her. It took a moment for her eyes to adjust to the dim lighting, but when they did, she gasped and rocked back on her heels.   
  
Looking tiny against their massive bed, a small woman rested, enshrouded in makeshift bandages. Her mid-section was wrapped tightly with white linen, but a large crimson stain was spreading, and the air rattled in the woman's chest. Her dark eyes looked black against the pallor of her face, and it was almost as if she had collapsed in on herself.  
  
"Tokio," Saitou whispered from behind her, reaching out to capture a bandaged hand.   
  
Kaoru approached the bedside with brisk efficiency, remembering all of the hours spent at her fiancé's side, as he worked in the hospital. She pulled back the covers and began unwrapping the bandage. The wound was hot to her touch, burning and crusty, yet the woman could not stop shivering.  
  
"Boil me some water," she snapped. "I need clean bandages, a needle, thread, and a damp rag of cool water to go with the boiled."  
  
"Can you help her?" Saitou asked, oddly respectful.  
  
"If you boil me some water," she replied impatiently, kneeling at the bedside and checking her vitals.  
  
Far longer than she would have liked, the men were back with everything she requested. Saitou hovered at her back, his nervous hovering cracking her nerves. Far more gently than she would have liked, she shooed him out and shut the door behind him. She needed all of the calm she could get, as she worked frantically into the night, battling fever and infection, but finally, blissfully able to put her own troubles aside . . .   
  
TBC


	6. Resonance of Bells

Disclaimer: I don't own Kenshin or Kaoru. I don't want to either…

Mail Order Bride

Chapter Five: Resonance of the Bells

By: omni82

The rustle of crisp sheets jerked Kaoru out of the restless half-doze she'd been slipping in and out of most of the night. She clutched convulsively at the arm of her chair, for a moment, feeling lost and falling into the endless night. After a moment, her eyes adjusted to the gray light of false dawn and her senses steadied.

Light filtered through the shutters, casting dark bars over the slight form crumpled on her marriage bed. She stood up, and moved closer, horribly aware that mouth her seemed welded together with a foul, thick paste, and her hair, still sodden with sweat, hung in thick, dull locks. Her skin positively ached for a bath and all she really wanted to do was to lie down next to the slender woman, whoever she was, and sleep until the Final Judgement.

Still, she stood up.

The figure was watching her with large, alert eyes as she moved closer, but didn't let her expression change so much as a hair. Kaoru paused by the edge of her bed, suddenly feeling self-conscious. She had meant to sit on the edge of the bed, to ask her how she was feeling, but... She pressed the back of her hand against the woman's forehead and straightened up.

"No fever," she noted calmly. 

"No," the woman agreed in a soft, low voice.

There was something in her voice . . . a half-remembered sound, a feeling, a sight. She peered at the figure, suddenly curious.

"How do you feel?" she asked just to hear her speak again.

A soft, rueful laugh was startled out of the shadows. "Like I was just attacked by a horde of bandits."

"Oh, I wouldn't say a whole horde," she responded lightly. "At least not from what I gathered. Just a few scrawny ones."

"And my husband...?"

"His main concern was your well-being. He was quite frantic, which, I gather, is rather unusual."

There was a moment of silence, and then Kaoru felt, rather than saw the mischievous smile tugging on the other woman's lips.

"And the bandits?"

"He said he needed help burying them."

An irrepressible chuckle burbled into the morning. And it was then that Kaoru realized the sense of familiarity about this woman. It was in the soft drawl of her voice, reminding her of the sharp tang of ocean air, the stench of fish, the bustle of Boston. Suddenly Kaoru missed home with a fierce stab.

"You're from Boston," she stated.

"In the black," she agreed. She rose up onto one elbow, but then with a hiss of pain fell back onto her side. Kaoru moved closer, but the woman waved her away.

"I'm from Boston," she repeated, "Just as you obviously are. The question, though, is what a Boston-bred miss is doing out in the great savage West." There was no mockery in her voice, only curiosity.

Kaoru paused for a moment, her mind focused inward. A soft cough brought her back.

"You can sit down, you know." 

She gave a guilty start and settled back into her chair. She had sounded so kind . . . well, why not? She couldn't despise her any more than her husband already did.

"To start with, " she said, resting her hands on the chair's arms, like a throne, "My name is Kaoru. I was married to Kenshin a few days ago, but before then, I had never left Boston…"

Then, suddenly, unwillingly, her entire life story was flooding out of her; all of her doubts, her fears, her shames. She talked until her voice was hoarse, and she could barely hear her own voice. Only when the last word croaked out and she couldn't convince her lips to shape another did she stop. 

The figure on the bed was unnaturally still, and after a long moment, Kaoru began to wonder if she had fallen asleep, or worse - died. But no, her chest still rose and fell in steady even breathing, while her eyes peered into the dark room.

The sun began to climb in finger lengths, as Kaoru waited for a response, any response. First it hovered just above her knee, a strand of gold laughing against the dark. Little motes of dust danced inside it, caught in an iridescent arc from the morning light. Gradually, the beam began to swell, chasing the shadows away, reaching her thigh, her waist, and her chest. And still, neither moved. Kaoru was just swaying into sleep again, when Tokio spoke.

"My father was an Irish merchant, and my mother was a Japanese geisha," she began, "So when he brought her home, I was raised Catholic."

Kaoru stared at Tokio, as sun broke across her face. She had the blue eyes of an Irish girl, set in the almond frame of the Orient. Her face was narrow, with high, European cheekbones, but her nose was short and flat, and a dusky tone shaded the rose and pearl of her skin. Thick, black hair crowned her delicate features, and in the morning light, she looked like a dark angel.

"Papa was very devout when I was little," she continued, "But when Mama died, when I was eight, he stopped going to Church. Angry with God, I suppose. I went alone for a few years after that, but once he died, when I was fifteen, I stopped going too."

She paused for a long moment of reflection. "I never really missed it much. I was angry and rebellious against God, and frankly, I'd never really enjoyed mass. Oh, I'd gone, but mainly out of a sense of duty. I couldn't pay attention to the homily, and whenever I prayed, my thoughts were always loud in my head. The more deliberately I tried to think of one thing, or even nothing, the faster ideas rushed in to fill up the emptiness."

Kaoru chuckled a little, with the sympathy of someone who had spent far too many hours through dull homilies and long-winded gospels.

"No, I never really missed it," she repeated. "Not most of it, anyway. I took Papa's money, and became the leader of fashionable society. I was always busy - there were fashionable dresses and parties, and all the most beautiful men in Boston madly declaring their love to me. Everything was loud and busy, all the time. Those who knew me called me the Oriental Rose."

Kaoru let out a short breath, a number of things falling in place for her. The Oriental Rose, the leader of society. She had glimpsed her once, enviously, as a young girl. She had seemed so glamorous; sapphires always flashed on her fingers, and a crowd of beautiful men and women fluttered about her, like brightly bejeweled humming birds. And then, one day, she had vanished.

A question began to rise up, but a glance at her introspective eyes silenced her.

"No, I never really missed Church, except for sometimes, late at night, when everything kept racing endlessly through my head, always clamoring. At least when I had gone to Church, there had always been that one moment, when the priest is consecrating the Eucharist. I don't know if you're Catholic, or familiar with the religion, but what he says, translates to the words of Christ at the last supper. 

"'Take this, all of you, and eat it. This is my body, which will be given up for you and for all, so that sins may be forgiven. Do this in memory of me.'" Then he raises the host over his head, and the altar server, kneeling beside him in white, rings a set of bells. In that one instant, after the priest has spoken, everyone is silent, and all you can hear is the resonance of the bells. And in that instant, everything inside me stops, and listens." 

She aimed a sharp look at Kaoru. 

"That is faith, Kaoru, and that is love. An all-powerful love, which sweeps away everything else, until all you need, in that moment, is to exist. It's a love so complete that it encompasses everything - self, others, God, man. And in all those years as the belle of society, I never once, was able to clear all of the other things out of my head, and figure out what really mattered. Until I met Hajime Saitou."

A fond smile pulled across her lips. "I looked into his eyes and for the first time in years, everything inside me slowed, and then stopped. I finally, finally, was able to listen, and I knew that the only thing important to me was him. So I left everything, and followed him." 

Tears of frustration welled up in Kaoru's throat. Why did everything have to be so damned cryptic?

"But what does it mean?" she muttered, too low to be heard. "What does it mean?" she repeated, louder. "What does it mean?"

Tokio gave her an inscrutable look, then unexpectedly smiled - a sweet, sad smile of childlike innocence.

"It means this, Kaoru. I think that if you look into Kenshin's eyes, you will hear the resonance of those same bells. And in that moment, they will tell you that being together is the only thing that matters. Listen to them, forget the rest, and follow." 

Kaoru took her bandaged hand, and gave it a squeeze in thanks, the first bud of a smile beginning to bloom on her face. A crash shattered the silence.

She jumped up, gathered her skirts above her knees and sprinted toward the door, her own problems forgotten. Shouting met her ears, rough, angry cacophony, like shattering crystal. She burst into the sunlit yard, the noon sun blazing over head, to a sight of complete chaos.

Kenshin and Saitou stood in the center of yard, jackets off, sleeves rolled up, and fists curled. Yahiko was hovering to the side, his chest swelled up in pride, placing noisy bets, with the farm workers like a real live man, about the outcome of the fight. Sanosuke, though, was hovering to the side, half amused, but half really, truly concerned and indecisive.

The two men were going at each other - not like boxers, with the jaunty, bouncing footwork of good sports, but with the grace of angered tigers. 

Their eyes each burned with something black and wild. They circled each other slowly, stalking their prey until one or the other would leap into attack, without so much as the twitch of a muscle to give warning. Then they would attack, slugging at each other with scarred fists, so fast as to be a blur, unrelenting until one or the other slid out of reach like a spirit. 

They were eerily silent, even though everyone around them was cheering or cursing, according to their temperaments. Kenshin had a split and bleeding lip, while Hajime Saitou had a dark bruise forming on his cheek and a cut slashed across his chin. Sweat slid through their hair, and both of them were breathing heavily, yet neither blinked, neither gave a sign that they even noticed their own weariness. It was so pointless - so completely, primally, brutally pointless, that something inside her snapped.

"Stop it!" she screamed. "Stop it now!" 

Her voice echoed in her ears and she realized that she was screaming words she hadn't even realized she knew, sobbing angrily for air, mad enough to take them apart with a glance.

Everyone grew completely silent, yet still the two men didn't even blink.

"Stop it!" she screamed again, then leapt at Kenshin, all of her dignity gone. She just knew she wanted to hurt him, to make him pay for all the misery and pain he had brought her since her arrival. It was wrong, it was base, but the dull, sick anger was screaming in her ears, and she was on top of him, battering at him with bruised fists. She saw Saitou's fist draw back, she knew he would hit him, that it didn't matter she was in the way, that maybe she would get hurt badly.

Something startled flashed into his eyes. Surprise? Hurt? He slid his arms around her, and she felt herself flung to the side, just as a huge fist appeared, above them, about to connect with his jaw. 

"Hajime Saitou!"

And miraculously, this cold, implacable man stopped.

Tokio was leaning against the frame of their house, a large robe, sliding off to reveal the white bandages around her shoulders. Her breathing was fast and uneasy, and she clearly spoke through a lot of pain. Yet her lips were quirking with that barely suppressed, irrepressible chuckle which seemed to perpetually hover about her.

Saitou straightened up, and smoothed the front of his shirt in nervous habit, oddly out of place in this big, self-assured man. Then, he pulled a slightly squashed cigar out of his pocket, lit it and began to smoke, turning his back calmly to Kaoru and Kenshin. 

"Ah. Tokio. So you're awake." 

His face was impassive, but for just an instant, Kaoru thought she saw something - a flash of wild joy which made her see, a little better, the man Tokio loved. 

"Well then, shall we go inside?" He offered his arm to Tokio, politely, and her lips quirking upward, she accepted following.

Everyone began to disperse, fading shamefacedly into the dust, until it was just Kaoru, still sitting on Kenshin. His chest was heaving under her thighs, and when she looked down at him, she was no longer angry. A black eye was starting to form, but he stared up at her, unblinking. All she wanted was to go in, take a bath, and sleep. Her head was beginning to ache from all the sun, and whatever Tokio had said about bells and God seemed distant to her, part of one gigantic, muddled mess. 

"Kaoru." A familiar voice said dryly. I see you're enjoying your time in the Wild West." 

She didn't need to turn to recognize Aoshi.

TBC...


	7. Finale

Disclaimer: I own nothing.

Mail Order Bride

Chapter Six: Finale

By: omni82

"Aoshi," Kaoru repeated, scrambling to her feet. She blushed, smoothing her skirt down and trying to straighten her hair. 

"Kaoru," he acknowledged with a nod.

He was dressed immaculately in a neatly pressed ebony suit, looking smooth, cultivated, and wildly out of place in the rustic beauty of their setting. He was a walking shadow, drawing all light into a beautiful, black onyx pool. Everything about him was perfect, just as she had remembered, from the way he pant leg fold in a crisply ironed crease, to the way all of the dirt and dust of life seemed to actually flee the shining black of his boot. 

Aoshi ran a long, elegant hand through his raven hair in a gesture of practiced habit. His blue eyes crinkled at the corners, in the beginning of one of those rare, secret smiles, which had first made her love him. Kaoru blushed, and felt herself start to smile back, before she remembered the man he'd been when she left.

He noted the way she smoothed her face into an expression of contempt, but merely gave a cheerful wink.

"And you must be Kenshin," he said smoothly, stretching his hand out. 

Kenshin looked at his hand, but did not move.

"It appears," he said instead, "That you have a great advantage over me, because I have no idea who you are."

Aoshi simply laughed again, the smooth, easy laugh he used with senior doctors or society men, meant to put them at ease and make them trust in his sincerity.

"My apologies. My name is Aoshi. Your wife had a preexisting contract to marry me, and now I've come to collect."

***

Kenshin watched the way the deep crimson blush seemed to me creeping down Kaoru's neck every time Aoshi looked at her, and began to get an uneasy, familiar feeling in his shoulders. Back in the war, whenever he had seen the black lumbering cannon creep over a ridge, surrounded by a host of silent, big-eyed southern boys, he would get the same feeling. The muscles around his spine would bunch together, and the back of his neck would go white with tension, just before he sounded a charge. 

A battle would be preferable right now.

They were sitting in his common room, calmly eating lunch, and discussing the disposal of his wife. Aoshi had given the rough, golden timbered room a single look, but merely commented, "How nice," before sitting down in the most comfortable chair.

He took the seat across from him, and he didn't fail to notice that Kaoru had sat next to Aoshi, rather than him. The small, irrationally jealous part of his mind stirred.

"So," Aoshi concluded, with a winning smile, "I've realized my mistake, and I'm willing to take both Yahiko and Kaoru with me, if, of course, you'll consent to have your marriage annulled." 

Kaoru stirred at his side, but Aoshi, merely smiled and patted her hand.

Kenshin stared down at the floor, memorizing the scuff in his leather boot, remaining silent. He thought of battle and again devoutly wished to be there instead. The splatter of blood, the scream of the dying man next to him, as he charged, stepping on the dead and dying in a rush of fear and adrenaline - that was something real, something tangible he could fight. Here there was only a far too reasonable man, with his smooth, unctuous voice, and the unreadable look in Kaoru's eyes.

"I . . . I need time to think about it," he temporized.

Aoshi nodded, that same, affable smile never slipping. 

"Of course, though . . ." his eyes darted toward Kaoru. "I would be willing to . . . compensate you, if that's a concern."

"And how much, exactly, do you think my wife is worth?" he asked, dryly. 

Aoshi leaned forward and murmured a sum. Kenshin swallowed, impressed despite himself. That was more money than he'd see in ten years, living on the prairie. Aoshi's azure eyes darkened into dark swirling pools and for a moment held him.

"Just think about it."

A thump broke the silence. Both of the men looked up, startled. Kaoru stood in the center of the room, her chair fallen by her side. Her legs were braced slightly apart, and her arms were folded under her breasts. Her own dark eyes were flashing and she just looked at them. Then she turned and left.

Kenshin's eyes followed her slender, retreating figure, and shook his head.

"Ah, women," Aoshi sighed. "Just like horses. The finer the flank, the more high strung." And with that elegant analogy, he stood up, and followed her out.

***

Kaoru burst into a run, as soon, as she was out of sight. The sharp, dry blades of grass cut at her legs, leaving a little red lattice of welts, but she didn't care. An indefinable mixture of emotions coursed through her, and frankly, she didn't know whether she wanted to smack the smug expressions off their faces, respectability be damned, burst into tears, or throw herself on the ground and start kicking her heels and screaming like a brat in a temper tantrum. The last actually seemed the most tempting right now.

She didn't hear the footsteps until he was right on top of her. A big, warm hand enclosed her wrist and spun her around. There was only a moment to register that it was Aoshi not, as she'd hoped, Kenshin, before his lips were pressed against hers in an urgency he'd never shown back in Boston.

His warm lips moved against hers and she felt his breath swirl madly within her lungs. The warm moisture of his taste filled her mouth, and all she could feel was the soft movement of his tongue. His hands were clutched around her waist, and for a moment, all she wanted to do was melt into his arms. 

He finally broke off, but didn't let go of her. A small, sweet smile was playing on his lips, and he brushed the tip of his long white finger against her cheek.

"Kaoru, sweetheart," he murmured into her hair. "Come home. I can make this all go away. Come home with me, and I'll take care of you, always."

It was so tempting, to just give all of this up, and go away, to have someone she could depend on, always. All those years with Aoshi - they couldn't be a mistake, could they? 

But then she remembered the look on his face when she'd left him that day; angry, like a man cheated out of something he owned. Oh, it was flattering and seductive that he came all of this way to bring her home, but had he ever once even asked her if she wanted to come "home"? No, he'd just barged in with the easy self-assurance of a man who was coming to reclaim a lost bride, and tried to buy her from her husband. Kenshin, who had always been kind, who had worried about her honor who - she realized, in a flash of insight, hadn't been disgusted with her, but himself. Kenshin had been thinking about her fear, alone in this wilderness, and thought he had taken advantage of her.

She almost laughed in relief, but a look at Aoshi's earnest blue eyes stilled it in her throat.

"No, Aoshi," she said gently. "I can't. I am home." 

His lips twisted and, cool, implacable Aoshi, who had always been serene, went completely out of control.

*** 

Aoshi stared at this insolent, beautiful bitch in front of him and something snapped. He was laughing at him, he knew it, under those long lashes, she saw a man who had lost, and she was laughing at him.

His hand shot out and clenched around her throat. Her eyes snapped open, and hands stretched out in supplication, clawing in wordless terror at his hands, her cries cutting off. He squeezed, feeling her soft throat start to close, and crumple, under the inexorable pressure of his hands. 

He threw her off of him in a convulsive motion, sending her crashing on the ground in a disoriented heap, coughing, heaving dry air. Her legs spread out, bare and tangled, as she dragged herself to her knees and began crawling away from him. He slammed a thick heel on her hand, making her sag to the ground with a whimper of pain, and a dull crack.

When she looked up, he saw real terror in her eyes, and smiled. He wanted, he needed, to see her shrink back, and sob at his laugh, sob until there were no sounds left, just the music of his own staccato breathing and her flesh ringing dully beneath his fists into the open air.

***

Kenshin's looked at the rippling grass, where Aoshi had just retreated. There was something wrong about the whole situation. Now that he wasn't under his gaze, he felt uneasy. The man was just too . . . perfect.

He stood up and began following him, for no particular easy. He stalked through the grass, hidden, and easily following his trail. 

The pair raised out of the clearing, like a Tower of Babel, Poseidon's trident erupting from a calm sea. Kaoru was in his arms, melted against his shoulder, and he was running a finger along her jaw, murmuring something into her hair.

So. That was that. Kenshin turned and started back toward the house, trying to tell himself he should be relieved. No more uncertainties, no more guilt. She had been the one to betray him; his hands were clean. He could accept his thirty pieces of silver, with no guilt, and move on.

But as he walked, a terrible anger began building in him, and he bit his lip. His shoulders began to stiffen again and he longed to hurl something at the pair, to spit on them and their money and damn their new life to the coldest, darkest hell.

He half turned, and looked at the pair, tempted turn back and curse them all, but froze. 

Kaoru was crumpled on the ground, clutching her hand, and looking up at Aoshi with true fear. He was hurling his fist at her over and over, and still his face was not anything Kenshin would call sane.

He began sprinting through the grass, making no pretense at stealth anymore, flashing into the scene with an enraged scream, and punching Aoshi before he had any time to react. His fist connected with a satisfying crack. Before Aoshi had time to recover, Kenshin was on him again swinging -not wildly, no- but with each punch as deliberately controlled as the crack of a whip. 

Aoshi backed up, until he tripped over Kaoru, and swore. He grabbed her and hauled her roughly to her feet, using her as a sort of impromptu shield against Kenshin. His left arm was wrapped around her neck, but in his right hand, he held a gun.

"I'm willing to call this a draw," he said slowly, dangerously. "Let me take Kaoru, and I won't hurt her."

Kenshin made a polite noise of disbelief, quirking an eyebrow upward at the sight of her bruised and purpled face. 

"I mean it," Aoshi said. "I've put a lot of work in, trying to get her back. There were those bandits I hired, to attack the next farm over, so she'd want to go home with me. They couldn't attack here, naturally - you can't trust scum like that to keep off of a beautiful woman. I'm a successful man. I need a beautiful wife." 

"Well why don't you buy another one," Kaoru snarled, her voice hoarse and strained. "Because this one isn't coming home with you."

That look of rage twisted Aoshi's face again, but before he could move, a single shot rang out, and a look of surprise crossed his eyes, then he slumped over. Kenshin flew to Kaoru's side, pulling her out of Aoshi's arms, as his body convulsed, clutching her throat.

She sagged in to his arms, burying her head against his chest and sobbing inarticulately. Standing behind the body was Saitou, with Tokio leaning against his arm, both oddly detached and dispassionate.

"Slay evil instantly," he said, sliding his gun back into his holster. His eyes narrowed, and he said with a little more force, "No one hurts my wife."

Kenshin nodded in thanks and turned his attention back to his wife, who was shivering convulsively.

"Kenshin," she whispered. "I thought I was going to die, without ever seeing you again... I love you. I don't care about anything, not what I'm supposed to be, not the thirty days, your wife. When the bells resonate all I hear is us."

Kenshin stroked her soft hair, and whispered soothing words to her. Bells? She was obviously going into shock, incoherent. Still . . . 

"But how did you know about my wife?"

"Sanosuke told me," came the muffled reply.

"And... It doesn't bother you?'

"No. She's a part of you, and I'll take you however you are. Whole, hurting, even in love with a dead woman. It doesn't matter."

"Kaoru . . ." He kissed the top of her head, fervently. "I love you."

I love you . . . The words echoed, carried on the golden laughter of the wind. As he held his wife, her shivering began to stop. That moment was hardly more than a spark in time, lingering wistfully as the soft strains of a flute carried on a breeze. The amber fields rippled with the wind, surrounding them in all direction with unwavering light. Above them was an endless azure sky, with lacy, white clouds dappling its flawless surface. All of it would fade - the clouds would melt away, and the sky would fade to a dark rose, then the deep black of night. Winter would come and the two would grow old, and die. One day, all that would be left from the history of their upheavals would be two twin graves, abandoned, forgotten, and trampled by the unforgiving elements. 

Yet, even on that day, her words would linger, remembered by the earth itself. And he knew that no matter what happened in his life, all that mattered was once, today, his wife had loved him. This moment would never die.

"I love you," he repeated in a litany. "I love you." 

It was enough.

Not to Be Continued…


End file.
